Card of the Year – 4 of Wands, Completion

I'm going to write about the meaning of the Tarot cards in my deck, but rather than doing it in some dull old logical order I thought I'd just cut one out of the deck when I have the time and see which one turned up. With time this may even turn into a complete, if slightly eccentric, guide to how to read the Tarot. I'll also try to figure out if they are turning up randomly or if there's some meaning in which card turns up at which time.

Let's try and be a little more ambitious today – rather than simply pulling out a card with the intent of giving it meaning for the day, let's take one and consider it to have meaning for the whole year ahead. Well, it's the 1st of January, it's the time when you are supposed to do things like this.

4 of Wands, Completion

[Image to follow as soon as my flat is less squishy and I can get at my scanner again]

Well, that could be a whole lot worse. I'm rather fond of this card. The suit is wands, so we are dealing with the Fire element. Fire is concerned with passion, drive, determination and at an esoteric level with Will. The 4 of Fire is a quite balanced card, fire is very much working in our favour, it is well rounded and useful. Astrologically this card represents Mars sitting in Aries, where it is very happy – their fiery natures complementing each other. As a four it is quite a refinded card, there isn't too much chaos or uncertainty within it.

The name of the card gives it's clearest meanings – Completion. In a mundane setting this card represents things being completed, but with the implication that they have been completed well, that the outcome is appropriate. I will often describe it in terms of 'the final piece falling into place' or 'realising that you have all you need'. The circle is complete, no part is missing, all of the energies required are already present. When applied to a person it usually mean that that person has all the resources they need to get done what they need done; in a relationship it is a good sign that the couple between them add up to a pleasing whole without any parts missing; for a project it would suggest that everything needed is at hand and things will naturally go in a positive direction.

Generally this is a good card, it is positive, encouraging, indicates that things will work out (but completed in a way that has a greater spiritual resonance than a card like 'Success' or 'Wealth' which simply suggest 'the job will get done' – the 4 of Wands implies that it could be no other way, that the flow of energy was always leading to a completion).

As a card for the year this suggests that this year will see various things being 'finished off' – a good time to look at ongoing projects with a view to drawing them to a successful and satisfying end, a good time to think about the fact that you already have what you need to move forward. We may see in the world at large that various processes finally come to an end, finish and create space for new things to manifest in 2012. Given the state of the world, and the general feeling of discomfort and discontent I sense from a lot of people right now, this is a good card to have backing us up as we go into a new phase. It also suggests to me that many of these uncomfortable processes will prove to have had a surprisingly positive outcome in the final analysis.